Wounded Berries
by Mew Kitsune
Summary: A year slowly passes by Tokyo, Japan, and Ichigo and the other Mew's discover another unfound partner! And it turns out that Kisshu still may be alive! Reviews please! (Chapter 5 up) ( A lil bit of a IxR story, but IxM forever)
1. Angel's Reign

Wounded Berries 

_Authors note: I have a feeling that all of you will like this story. It's rather mind wrangling by the fact that there is another Mew Mew that is unheard of, and it's a wonderful twist. This is a Romance/Drama/Adventure/Humor story, so basically more chapters to the Tokyo Mew Mew manga. Hopefully you guys will like what I have done with it. I assure you that this will be, by far, one of the best Tokyo Mew Mew stories on here. I might have to explain a few things first though. Okay: the TMM group stopped fighting because the aliens (Pi, Kish, Tart etc.) were destroyed, Masaya still doesn't know that Ichigo is Mew Ichigo, Masaya have made their promise and have gotten "married", and one year has passed. So, if you like, begin reading the first chapter!_

Chapter One: Angel's Reign 

It was a beautiful morning in Tokyo, Japan. The sun was beaming down beautifully in the baby blue sky, the robins perched happily in their tree singing a perky little tune, the children outside playing ball, the trees of Tokyo swerving side to side by the surpassing wind…

And the young Ichigo Momomiya sleeping soundlessly on her bed on a Saturday morning.

She was sprawled out recklessly in her pale silk sheets, her dark pink hair tangled as it lay sloppily onto her pink pillow. Her normally shining eyes were closed and showed no emotion whatsoever. With one off dangling almost-lifelessly off of her futon, and the other by her head on the pillow, it looked as if the poor teenager fell asleep during a game of Twister.

Her eyes snapped open at the sound of the telephone, as she quickly shot up out of her discomforting position, and darted to the other side of the room to the phone receiver. Almost falling after noticing that her foot was sleep, she grabbed the phone and struck the ground almost immediately after she picked up the line.

" Moshi Moshi." she spoke sleepily into the white phone, half talking- half yawning.

" Hi Ichigo-sama!" a familiar voice echoed into the phone, their voice full with happiness.

" Masaya-sama!" she said with joy as she grinned largely, " What's up?"

" Well… I wanted to know if you wanted to go to the Sakura Tree exhibit with me this morning." Masaya said to her happily, anxiously waiting for her answer.

_Wow, _she thought, _It's been a long while since Masaya and I have done something together. And the trees just grew back this year, too!_

" Sure!" she replied as her face began to turn a slight shade of red, as she fell soundlessly onto her back with a huge smile, "I'd love to go!"

"Great!" he said, sighing with joy as he lean back on his wall with a grin; his dark hair covering his shining eyes, " See you there at 10:30?" he asked.

Ichigo looked at the clock.

9:57am.

She had time.

" Sure! Seeya then, Masaya-sama!" she said proudly, knowing she was finally going to go on another date with Masaya.

" Alright. Seeya there!" he said joyously then hung up just after Ichigo did.

Ichigo hurriedly got ready for the date. She tore off her PJ's and put on her best outfit: her best blue jeans and a pale pink tank top, her cat bell necklace – which she already was wearing, and her brown shoes. She brushed her hair out straight and pulled it back into her normal hairstyle, then ran happily out of her house to go see Masaya at the Sakura Tree exhibit.

She watched her back constantly of Ryou, hoping that he wouldn't pop out of nowhere and kidnap her for another assignment for the Mew Mew's. She wanted everything tog o right today, today was her day. Today was _Saturday. _No school. No bedtimes. No fighting crime. Just… Saturday.

She walked past her school, the café, and Mint's mansion; knowing she wouldn't have to enter either of them the rest of the day. Saturday means no school, complete freedom to be with friends and stay up late. Saturday's are normally Café Mew Mew's slow working days, so she doesn't have a shift today. And as for Mint mansion, she didn't have to go and fulfill her every wish like most of the time. Today she got to go see Masaya; her boyfriend.

Yeah; it was all good.

Ichigo smiled to herself as she walked pass them all, reaching a small streams with a stone bridge hovering it over it silently. The Sakura trees were standing high beyond the moving waters, the pale-pink petals falling to the ground slowly as if there were in a waltz with the whispering wind. Slowly she walked over the bridge, and found herself searching for Masaya throughout the exhibit, but she didn't see him anywhere near.

She sighed and lent sloppily onto the nearby tree, her back against the bark of the tree, one leg slightly lifted as her knee bent, and the other taking all the pressure standing stiff. She closed her eyes and pictured him in her mind, plain as day…

He was tall and tan, a beautiful soft face that made her dare to dream. He had short black hair; his ebony bangs floating perfectly over his caramel eyes that were shaped as if almonds. His teeth were pearl white, and they shone blissfully every time he looked at her. He always wore casual attire, t-shirts and jeans. She loved him the way he is; she always had.

" Ichigo-sama!" A voice yelled.

Ichigo opened her eyes to see Masaya running from a distance up to her at the tall, lanky Sakura Tree. As soon as she got there she stood up off of the tree, and stared him over. He was smiling; just as she pictured.

She couldn't help but smile.

" Ichigo-sama?" he said, his voice soft and caring, " Are you alright?"

" What?" she said in surprise, " Oh, yeah! I'm fine!" she replied to the boy sheepishly.

He chuckled. " You looked so surprised… I didn't mean to scare you." He replied.

" You didn't scare me at all, Aoyama-kun. I'm just very happy to see you." She spoke smoothly to him, and yet she felt so awkward telling him this.

He looked at her with a large smile, " I'm glad to see you as well, Ichigo." His eyes went down to her neck, spotting her cat bell he gave her.

She smiled brighter, ringing the bell with her index finger.

" I cant believe your still wearing that thing…" he said, " I gave it to you a year ago… longer than that… I think." He said with a smile, a laugh in his voice.

" I never take it off," she said full of emotion, " It reminds me of you every time I hear it jingle."

He smiled again; she loved his smile, " I'm glad," he said as he stared deep in her eyes causing her to look away from the awkwardness, " because every time it rings, it reminds me of you as well," he admitted, " and every time I see you wearing it, it makes be proud to know that you appreciate me that much…"

" I love you, Aoyama-kun," she said wishfully; her eyes closed. " I couldn't appreciate you any more."

And then there was silence.

Ichigo looked up at the tree as she stood next to him, hand and hand.

" They're beautiful this year aren't they, Aoyama-kun?" she said happily as she gawked in awe at the Cherry-blossoms.

" They are… it's a shame they didn't get a chance to bloom last year," he said with a frustrated sigh, " Do you remember?"

" How could I forget?" she said, and meant it.

Last year, around this time, there was a Sakura Tree exhibit. It was a horribly day for her, for Masaya had invited her to go and see it with him. Sadly, this is the same year she became a Tokyo Mew Mew member. Kish had her in near death, and the trees has burnt in return for her life being spared. She felt horrible. That same day Aoyama-kun had almost found out she was Mew Ichigo, the leader of the Tokyo Mew Mews.

" Too bad…" he said, " I really wanted you to see them with me last year. But I am very happy they've bloomed well this year. They're just perfect for our date."

" They are…" she said, then looked over at him.

Masaya reached up and picked one of the small pale-pink flower bunches off of the tan branch, and inhaled it's scent in his lungs. Ichigo was looking at him in admiration to his expression, which was happiness. He then turned to her, the flower delicately in his hand, and put the flower gently in her hair.

"There…" Masaya said with a smile as his hands slipped away from her hair and down to his side again, " Now my Sakura-Angel is complete."

" T-Thank you, Masaya-kun…" she said, her cheeks flushed with a deep red, staring at her feet in embarrassment.

His hand suddenly found its way to her jawbone, lifting it up gently with his fingertips, "No need to thank me."

Their.

Faces.

Were.

Closer.

" Masaya I-"

The feeling struck her as if her heart was dripping with warm, sweet caramel. As soon as this happened, she felt something; a spark. The next thing she knew, he was pulling her closer and her eyes were closed. Her hands slid up to his chest, and his hands to her waist, pulling her closer. She honestly couldn't believe it.

She was kissing him.

Their lips parted seconds later, and she stepped away while her face glew with happiness and a deep shade of red. She bit her lip nervously, trying to recall what had just happened. He, Masaya, was also blushing; his eyes narrow with happiness and a bit of shock.

" So, hentai!" She teased, " This is what you had in mind when you invited me here?"

He blushed even more and stared down at his feet sheepishly, " Well… Uh… actually… I wanted to know if you wanted to come over to my house today… to… study … and … yeah…"

Masaya looked up to see Ichigo wasn't there, and his huge smile slowly faded. She left him there alone in the park. Abandoned. Again. He sighed and stood there in shock for a few seconds, wondering why she would leave.

_What did I do wrong?, _he thought, _Was… it… the kiss? Did I freak her out too much? Woah! Wait… if she would have ran away, I would have heard her bell…_

He looked down at where she was once standing, and stared at it for a while. He was both hurt, and guilty. There, on the ground, was a red ribbon, with the golden cat bell attached. He bent down and picked it up, hearing the small _jingle_ noise at it moved around in his palm. The clasped it in his hand and slowly walked off, making sure that he didn't hear it ring.

there, above where she was standing was Ichigo stuck onto Ryou Shirogane in a Sakura Tree branch. His hand clasped over her mouth so she wouldn't talk, and her body pressed against his so she couldn't move.

" SHIROGANE!!!!!!!" Ichigo screamed at the top of her lungs after she watched Masaya walk off in pain, " YOU BAKA!!!!!!!"

" What?" the blonde beauty said with a playful smile, " I need you at work."

" AND THIS IS YOUR WAY OF ASKING?!?!" Ichigo screamed at the handsome teenager, pushing herself out of his arms, falling unexpectedly off of the branch and onto the ground.

" Well… yes." He said with a smile, falling back as his upper body hung off of the branch; his legs wrapped around the branch as he hung upside down above her.

" I finally get a chance to go into Aoyama-kun's house, and you kidnap me as if I were still a super hero!" she yelled, jumping off of the ground and back onto her feet, brushing the dirt off of her dress.

" Sorry," he said with a smile, " I just had to interrupt, I mean, after the kiss it was kinda getting a little sappy."

" YOU SPYED ON US!?!?!" she screamed.

" Spying is such a strong word, its more like falling upon a rather odd momen-"

She turned around and tried to slap him, but failed as he fell off of the branch and onto Ichigo in surprise.

" I may be a spy," Ryou admitted, "But at least I'm not a two-timer!"

" OH, PLEASE!" Ichigo yelled, " Just get off of me!"

" You know, this reminds me of the time-"

"NOW!"

Ryou got off of her with a smile on his beautiful face; his eyes shining like two sapphires, " Just get to work, neko." He said with a smile, " You know I was kidding."

" Kidding my a-"

" Ichigo, do you want to get paid?"

" Yes, Shirogane-hiten."

" Then get to the café and work. I need you there."

Work was, nonetheless, evil.

Ichigo tossed her uniform onto Café Mew Mew's floor, and walked to the door.

" Ja ne, Shirogane-kun." She said to him, awaiting a reply.

" Get going." He yelled.

_Some goodbye,_ Ichigo thought.

She walked out of the heart-shaped door in the café and automatically knew what was wrong after just three steps. Her bell was missing.

" My bell!" she gasped, " I have to go get it! It must have fallen off when Shirogane-hiten kidnapped me!"

She ran in fear of loosing it and felt horrible and guilty that if it had broken, she wouldn't be Masaya's favorite neko any longer. She ran quickly through the sunset, running over the small stone bridge as she ran into the exhibit of the Sakura Trees. She ran, as tears struck down her face, to the exact same tree they stood at when they kissed.

" Please be here," she prayed, " _Please…"_

"Oh, Masaya-sama!" a girls voice spoke, " Thank you sooo much for bringing me here at the exhibit again. I had a blast at your house, too."

"What?" Ichigo said in pain, hiding behind the tree as she spyed.

The girl was clinging onto Masaya's arm; and he didn't seem to care. She had long blonde hair with red tips, and brown eyes with pale blue eye shadow. She had a long pair of blue jeans on, and a black shirt with red him that lined out the word, "Love". She was about Masaya's age, and she was beautiful… but she didn't recognize her from school.

" No problem, Akiyo." He said to her with bliss, " You deserve to see this place." He said to her, guiding her to the spot where Ichigo and Masaya were earlier. "This is the place."

" Yes, and it's beautiful." Akiyo said, hugging his arm again as they both smiled, " the sunset, and the trees, the horizon," she started and then looked up at him, " and you."

" Yes, thank you," Masaya said, " It's been such a while since you've watched a sunset like this with me."

" Yeah," she said, " About three months since I was here in Tokyo last, right?"

" Yeah, I think that's right," he said, " I've missed you being here."

"Watcha doing?" Ryou said to Ichigo, suddenly appearing behind her.

" Shhhhhh!!!" Ichigo said, "Be quiet!"

" And you call me a spy… at least I'm not a freaking stalk-" Ryou took a look, " Is that your boyfriend? Masaya?"

"Yes… now be quiet!" Ichigo said.

" Did you hear something?" Masaya asked Akiyo.

" Nope…" she replied, then looked back at the sunset, " I cant thank you enough, Aoyama-sama."

" Well, hey, you're with me now, okay?" he assured her, " you don't need to worry about being hurt anymore."

" This is getting good," Ryou whispered to Ichigo.

_This isn't happening… it cant be… he… he loves me! I know he does!!_

Ichigo turned away and ran off with tears burning down her cheeks. Ryou followed after her, knowing that this was going to be rather tough. Ichigo then seeped to her knees after crossing the bridge, weeping hard and –oddly- silently.

"Ichigo-chan…" Ryou said, " I'm sorry to say this to you…"

" Go away…"

" Ichigo, …Masaya… he's been cheating on you."

" Naw, really?!"

He bent down to her and held her close, letting her cry in his arms; Ryou's eyes on the verge of crying for her.

"It's alright…" he said, " Don't worry."

And then, as if it were planned, a raindrop fell. And then another. And another. More. Soon enough, it was pouring, and the three of them sat there; crying… each of them for their own different reasons.

Ichigo cried because Masaya didn't love her.

Ryou cried because he did.

And the heaven's… they cried because both of them had a broken heart. And sadly, it would stay that way.

_Author's note: I think this chapter went by really really well. But, hopefully, you liked reading it just as much as I did writing it. The next chapter will be up rather soon, and it will be called "Shattered Dreams". Just a little jump into your mind to what might happen. Anyway, please R&R! It means a ton to me! Please please please R&R! no matter if it's 1 sentence to 100 paragraphs. Tell me what you liked, what you didn't like, what I need more in the story, and what I might need to change. - MewKitsune27_


	2. Shattered Dreams

Wounded Berries 

_Author's note: Hehe. This chapter is a ton of fun; you have no idea. I had a lot of fun putting this together, and not because I like to watch Ichigo suffering- I hated it! The only reason I loved writing this chapter so much because I put a lot of work into it. I had to keep referring to the manga to actually get Ichigo to sound like HERSELF; and proudly, I finally got it right. Even though it sounds easy, man, it was hard. Anyway, thanks for the reviews and I really hope that you guys will continue reading this! I put a TON of my school work into writing, including the poem book I will be putting out Summer of 2005. I will be posting the poems up here shortly, and I think I'm going to begin a quote for each chapter… learned it in my writing class. I also wanted to thank all of you guys for all the reviews. Although I've only had 3 of them, I'm very proud that I've gotten both of them hooked onto it! That's all I wanted anyway! And in any case, this story (because of all the confusion with parings) is, in fact, IxM. But, there will be a little bit of Ryou in there somewhere. You'll see. Just read this chapter, and it'll clear things up a little bit more. (sorry about my babbling), Enjoy this chapter!_

_Dedicated to Austin; for bringing me back again. I love you._

**Chapter Two: Shattered Dreams**

Ichigo felt awkward inside Ryou's arms. It wasn't because the vibe she was getting from him wasn't comfort, but love; and it surely wasn't because she wanted to let Masaya see, because at the time she had no idea that he was watching her from afar. The reason why she felt strange was because it really didn't bother her. She didn't hate it, but she didn't exactly like it either. It was a mixed feeling between her, and because she loved Masaya so deeply, she had to stop things before they even started.

"There must be… a mistake… Aoyama-kun he wouldn't," Ichigo said as she slowly pulled out of his grasp, " He… he wouldn't do this… would he, Shirogane-kun?"

It was then when she saw that he, too, was crying.

" Shirogane-kun? Are you cr-"

" Go home," Ryou said shakily, " Please… just… leave."

" But Shirogane, your-"

" Just go!" he yelled at her as the thunder boomed, " I'll explain later. I just need you safe."

" Safe," Ichigo asked him confusedly, " What's wrong? What's going on?"

" Just go. Call the café when you get home and I'll explain," he said as he stood off of the ground next to her, " Trust me. Run home. Fast, and as quickly as you can. Don't look back."

She narrowed her eyes as the water struck her face, a flash of lightening pointing out a through nod.

She took a step backwards as she looked at his sympathetic eyes gleaming at her, and then turned and ran as swiftly as possible, following her instructions on never looking back. Her mind kept wandering in different places, calling out different thoughts. Some thoughts, even, she couldn't believe she was thinking.

_Why was he crying? What's going on,_ she thought, _Shirogane-kun… tell me what's wrong with you. I want to help!_

The rhythm of the ran fell perfectly with the tempo of her feet upon the wet sidewalk. She looked up and saw that it was now dark, and there was a full moon watching over her, comforting her in this odd moment. She had strong urges to turn around and expect someone following her, but she quickly reminded herself of the orders she was given. She closed her eyes as she walked to her front door, and ran inside, closing the door.

As far as she was concerned rather no one was home, or everyone was asleep. Either way, it was too quiet in the house, and she needed something to comfort her. Not Ryou. Not Masaya. Not her family or friends. Just … someone. Anyone she didn't know.

The phone rang.

Her first thought: _Shirogane._

She ran to an end table by her stairs and picked up the phone.

" Moshi moshi." She said fearfully.

" Come to the café. I need you and the others to hear this," He said, "It's important."

"Alright," she said, "But… first, I want to know why I had to run home. Was somebody-"

" Following you? Yes," He said, " Someone was. I needed you home safe that way I could contact you without them knowing where you where going to be next."

" Who was it, and how do I not know their not by my door now?" she asked him.

" Because he's here with me. Come to the café."

He hung up; she was worried.

… Masaya? Could it be that it was him?

She entered the doors of the café and ran inside, seeing that Ryou and the others were already in the café, waiting for her.

" What's going on?" Ichigo raged, " I want to know why this is happening!"

" We have a problem," Ryou said to them, but mainly Ichigo.

" Two, actually. Well… maybe three." Keiichiro intruded.

" Spill the beans," Mint said, " I'm tired, it's ten o clock and I want to sleep!"

"One: You guys are going to have be to back in the Tokyo mew mew group," he said quickly, "Two: There is another member we have failed to notice."

They all blinked, " And three?"

" Kisshu may have survived." Keiichiro said to them, " He was following Ichigo home a few minutes ago."

"OOOooooHHH!" Pudding yelped, " Neko-onii-chan was up late with her boyfriend."

Ryou looked away.

" Shut up, Pudding!" Ichigo said, looking down as well.

" Get some sleep, guys. I'll expect all of you here earlier tomorrow being that it's Sunday. I want all of you here three hours early; noon," Ryou said, " Now get going. All of you."

" Oh, yeah!" Mint complains, " You tell us to come ALL the was out HERE to the DANG CAFÉ at ten-o-clock at night, and then expect us early at work tomorrow. Boy, your lucky I cant quit, Shirogane."

" No." Ichigo said as if in a grudge, " Not yet. I watched Kisshu die. I watched him... he died for me. I saw the blood. I saw his life slip away. It couldn't have been Kisshu."

" He's Kisshu," Zakuro said in her normal deadpan tone, "You can't underestimate him."

" Apparently not." Ichigo said, watching all the others walk out as she stood there dumbly.

" Momomiya-chan," Ryou said to her as he avoided eye contact; his back to her, " Go talk to Masaya in the morning. You'll see things clearer…"

He walked up to the stairs and then looked at her with a hurtful expression as he turned around, "… Hopefully." He then finished climbing the stairs, and disappeared into his own upper layer of the café. Ichigo just stood there baffled.

" Hopefully?" Ichigo murmured as her mind made her even more confused.

She decided to take his advice and go see him in the morning, even if things did seem at their worst. She took her gaze down from the stairs, and saw Keiichiro looking at her with a humble grin. She looked surprised, knowing that she forgot the fact that he was still there. Her expression softened as he passed by her, resting a hand on her shoulder.

"Hopefully."

Ichigo entered her house sometime around midnight coming home from the café, where she had spent several hours recapping the information from the entire night. She sat down on her bed and looked to her white and glass nightstand, where a pink-framed picture of Masaya stood; his eyes closed and a smile frozen on his lips. She smiled as a memory slowly entered her mind; corrupting her thoughts.

_:!:: Flashback: ::!:_

_All of them were inside the café, huddled together in front of a large Christmas tree overlooking the friends from the ceiling. They were taking their Christmas picture, each of them in their own costume. On the far left was Ryou, dressed up grimly as the Grinch in his own little green costume. Then was Lettuce, who was wearing her green café uniform, with a blinking red nose and antlers. Then there was Zakuro, looking over at Mint nervously as she shone in her white dress, her costume an angel with a golden halo. Mint was dressed as an ice princess, though her attitude, at the moment, didn't fit it. Pudding, dressed as a red and green elf, was dancing on top of Mint's head, happy as can be. Then, there was Ichigo dressed as a young Mrs. Clause; a red dress that fit her figure very well, in the palm of her right hand, Masha sat with a small Santa hat that Ichigo made herself. Masaya was then standing next to her as Santa, with the beard and everything, his right hand gently holding onto Ichigo's left._

_Behind the camera was Keiichiro, laughing his head off at the entire scene. He wasn't dressed up as anything, but the memory still suits him well in his smile. _

"_Say cheese!" Keiichiro said happily._

" _PUDDING!!! GET OFFA ME!" Mint said._

_A bright flash of light entered each of their eyes, as everyone but Ryou and Ichigo ran off to different corners of the café. Masaya ran to Keiichiro and took the camera, turning to Ichigo with a smile._

"_Hey, Ichigo!" he called._

_She turned around from looking at Ryou's cold eyes, and saw a flash in front of her._

_She smiled._

"_Aoyama-kun!!!" she yelled, " Give me that dang camera!" She teased, tackling him into the floor, snatching the camera from his hands. She smiled and sat up on top of him, and took the picture._

_Flash._

_Now it's gone._

_:!:: Flashback Over ::!:_

"Aoyama-kun…" she said, tracing her finger around the frame, "Why would you do this to me? …"

She turned over into bed and quickly got into a daze, her eyes lowly closing as she began to drift off into a slumber.

Still half asleep, she managed to let the words escape from her lungs before she drifted off into sleep.

" I love you…"

Ichigo was awoken by her alarm clock, which she had set when she got home… so she wouldn't forget about talking to Masaya. She sat up grimly; afraid of what she thought would be a disaster for a day. She quickly slipped her shoes on, and began to make her way to his house. Out the door she went, and onto the road to disaster she began to walk.

Sooner or later she reached the house, and she stood there staring at it for a long while. Finally, after a long deep breath, she walked up to the doorstep and courageously knocked upon the door. Behind it was laughter approaching slowly, and footsteps growing closer; her heartbeat raced.

She looked down at her feet just before the person opened the door. There, on the doorstep, was her worst nightmare. The last person she wanted to see.

_Akiyo Nakagawa._

"Oh!" Akiyo said in surprise, " I didn't know you would be here," she said as she looked Ichigo over, " I'll get Aoyama-kun."

Ichigo looked up at her in horror, wondering why she was there, "No. it's okay," Ichigo said to her, " I was just leaving. You needn't bother."

A tear struck the front porch as she turned away from the door, walking away. Just before she turned the corner, a hand rested perfectly onto her shoulder.

_Shirogane… I'm going to kill you._

" Listen, Ryou, if you think your going to help me-" Ichigo began, but then stopped as she saw that she was face to face with Masaya.

She looked down.

" Akiyo-sama said you needed me, Momomiya-san," Masaya said to her; his face looking sad, "We need to talk."

She looked down at her feet; tears still striking the ground, "…"

He ignored her tears for a second, confused, "It's… about Akiyo."

" I know about her." Ichigo said in terror.

" You do?" Masaya said with a smile, but then his face softened, "Then why are you so upset?"

" Why are you doing this?" Ichigo asked him; still avoiding his questions… and his eyes.

" Why should I not?" he said, "She needs a place to stay, so I'm letting her-"

" SHE'S STAYING WITH YOU!?" Ichigo screamed, whirling her head up at him as a tear flew off of her cheek.

" Yeah, I mean… she just… moved… in…" he said slowly, barely spitting out words.

" I'm leaving." She said to him coldly, turning away.

" Wait!" he said to her quickly, his lips curling into a familiar smile, " I have your bell."

"Keep it," she murmured.

He looked at her in shock, but then continued to take the necklace out of his pocket, "I was going to give it to you last night when I saw you," he said, "But it looked like you were busy with Ryou."

_Oh… oh no! Masaya… he… he thought…_

" You… you saw that, huh?" Ichigo said tearfully.

He nodded, confused.

She wanted to tell him she was glad. She wanted to tell him he deserved it for having two girlfriends. She wanted to tell him how much she hated him for doing this to her. She wanted to tell him… that it was over. But it didn't work. The words wouldn't come. She just stood there, smiling.

"It's not what you think," Ichigo said nervously.

_It's not what he thinks?_, She thought, _Where the heck did I get that from?_

" I know, Momomiya-san," he said as he gently pulled her to him, putting the necklace back around her neck, " You would never do that to me. You're my favorite neko, Ichigo. I love you, and I trust you."

She felt her stomach churn. But not with happiness, with nervousness, "Masaya?"

The moment of truth.

"Are you and Akiyo… dating?" Ichigo asked him.

A roar of laughter rang throughout the city of Tokyo, "ME? And… and… _Akiyo?"_ Masaya said, " YOUR KIDDING! She… she's my _cousin_!!!"

" Sorry," Ichigo said as the memories of him and Akiyo replayed, " I… I don't…"

He stopped laughing, and looked up at her in a sad expression, "You… you don't believe me?"

Ichigo, who felt horrible about this, shook her head.

His eyes narrowed in both sadness and angst, "The reason why I've spent so much time with her lately is because she just moved here to Tokyo because her parents died in a freak fire accident. The reason why she was with me last night was because we were talking about our kiss and she wanted me to show her where it happened, and the reason why you don't believe me is…?"

Ichigo looked at him sadly.

His eyes were torn; hurt with the expression of distrust. At his side his hands were clinched, and his body looked numb with the fact of loosing her. His hair overlooking his eyes as his head went down, the wind blowing it strongly. She took a few steps forward, pressing onto him as her face lay on his chest. Her eyes were closed in bliss, and she felt his heartbeat racing in her ear.

"I'm sorry, Aoyama-kun," she said; her tone like a whisper, "I… should have never doubted you for a second."

She pictured him smiling as his arms wrapped around her waist gently, pulling her closer, "It's fine. It's all okay now, Momomiya-san."

They pulled apart as Ichigo's necklace made a small _jingle_ noise that they both had missed.

A smile crept across Masaya's face, "Come inside… I want you to meet Akiyo."

_Authors note: Hahaha! I love cliff hangers! Anyways, the next chapter is called: Red Wonder. I'm looking forward to writing it, and it's gonna be one of the best action cliffhangers for a while. You guys will just have to wait, I guess! Anyway, R&R please!_


	3. Red Wonder

Wounded Berries 

Author's note: _oh, man, I'm so terribly sorry about not being able to post faster! I had a lot of moving around to do, and My boyfriend and I have been doing tons of stuff with eachother lately. Anyway, I loved writing this chapter; it was so much fun! I hope you guys enjoy it! Please R&R!!!_

**Chapter Three: Red Wonder**

Ichigo was staring deep into space, roughly putting grief on herself because of what happened. She was both scared of this, and very embarrassed. More than less… embarrassed. Sure, she was scared to the fact of meeting Akiyo, knowing that she had already set off a bad impression on Masaya's cousin in her own mind. She wanted to meet Akiyo, but she felt as if she would just be a burden… just a nuisance. She knew that Masaya was hurt from what had just happened, and she wasn't sure if she wanted to pour salt in an old wound. Especially Masaya's.

"Momomiya-san?" The dark-haired one said as he waved a hand in front of her face playfully, "Are you coming inside or not?"

Just after she saw the hand in her face, she looked over at him… seeing that he was smiling when he said, 'Inside'… but put his hand down and frowned when he said 'or not?'. She couldn't help but feel bad about this. She knew that meeting Akiyo would be an odd experience, but…

"Sure… it won't hurt," she said to him with a smile, her face slowly turning from sadness to pleasure.

"Good…" he said to her, taking her hand as they walked inside.

First, when she walked in, she didn't realize what she was doing. It all seem normal… until it hit her.

_I'M IN AOYAMA-KUN'S HOUSE!_

She was in shock.

The house was so beautiful… the floor was wooden and waxed to the point where you could see your face perfectly. The walls were a maroon-ish color, and there were normal furniture in the house; couches in the living room with a TV and wooden entertainment center. The living room was connected to the entryway, and she saw as well that the kitchen, too, was connected to the living room. She couldn't see much of it, other than the color of the well decorated walls; emerald.

Finally, she slipped into reality and came to notice that she was staring face to face with the girl of her nightmares; Akiyo.

She was, once again, looking very beautiful. She looked slightly older than Ichigo, maybe by a year. Her hair was a pale blonde- almost white- and flowed down to her waist. There were also flaming red extensions at the tips of her hair that were about two inches long. She had fare skin that looked as if she hardly ever was outside, and was wearing her normal attire. She wore A long black shirt with a white kanji character "_Aishitaru_", meaning love and long blue jeans. Some tennis shoes were hardly shown with the bagginess of her jeans, but they were black as well.

"I think you and Akiyo-san need some time to get to know each other," Masaya said to Ichigo kindly, "I will get a few sodas, and all of us will talk!"

There he went. Out the door and into the kitchen of his house, disappearing and leaving her there with her once-worst-nightmare.

"So you're the famous Ichigo that Masaya-kun never shuts up about!" Akiyo said to her kindly as she raised a hand out to Ichigo's, "Nice to finally meet you."

She blushed a little and then shook her hand, "Yes, nice to meet you, too Akiyo-chan." She said kindly as she let go of her hand after a short while.

" I love it here in Tokyo," Akiyo said to her; breaking the silence, " I'm originally from the USA, you know?"

"Really?" Ichigo asked in amazement.

"Yeah… it wasn't so great though…" Akiyo said, " I always loved it better here; whenever I visited Masaya-kun, I always told him I would move here!" Akiyo sounded like a child, though her voice was still very soft and tender, " I'm glad I did."

"Yeah, its nice …" Ichigo said dumbfounded; not knowing what to say.

Another long silence.

"So, tell me about your friends." Akiyo said after a while, smiling as her eyes sparkled.

" Well," Ichigo said with a laugh in her throat, "There's Minto, who is very spoiled and proper, but is still a really nice friend and a good person. Oh, and Retasu, who is very quiet and intelligent… very dependant as well. And there's Purin, a young acrobat that's constantly performing for money. There's Zakuro whom is very quiet and beautiful and logical… there's Ryou Shirogane who is the boss at my work; a bit of a jerk really… and Keiichiro who is very polite and kind; he works at the café, too."

"Wow," Akiyo said with a smile, "You have a lot of friends… all of them sound so interesting!"

"Yes…they are very interesting!" Ichigo said, " If _'interesting'_ is a definition of weird…"

They both laughed for a short time, and then another wave of silence came.

"Uhm… will you excuse me?" Akiyo said, " I want to talk to Masaya-kun…"

"Sure!" Ichigo said kindheartedly, though she knew that something had been immoral.

She watched Akiyo walk away and step into the kitchen, and she determined that she would sit on Aoyama's sofa and pass the time by making herself comfortable while she waited for them to return.

_Akiyo doesn't seem at all what I thought she would be like, _she thought_, In fact, I feel connected to her somehow. But… I wonder if I said something offensive to make her want to leave… I hope its nothing._

Out of the blue, outbursts of flames were seen in the kitchen and the sound of Masaya's voice screaming rang throughout her ears. Air blew her hair sympathetically, as heat quickly struck her. She jolted to her feet and darted into the kitchen, choking on smoke immediately. Dust and amber blinded her eyes, which caused them to burn as they began to water. Slowly but surely, she was gaining unconsciousness. Her lungs began to scream for clean air, and her eyes were now blood-shot. Inhaling smoke caused her throat to burn and her voice being raspy as she cried out Masaya's name, but it was useless. It seemed as if she was running through a maze, and if she didn't reach to the endpoint she would loose her life. These engulfing flames were beginning to send her a message. Death. If she weren't to find him, not only would Masaya die, but she would as well. Masaya's family. Akiyo. And Masaya's pets.

It was over; she felt it.

Her knees grew weak and her eyes began to heavily fall. She slowly receded herself to her knees, and her eyes began to close. It was then, when she saw her. It was then, when she noticed her very point of life. She knew it; she was saved… Retasu.

" **_RIBBON LETTUCE RUSH!"_** Retasu screamed, throwing her arm out as the water rushed over the flames and burned them out. She quickly bent down and picked up Ichigo, holding her with one arm as Rau – Masaya's Dog- was in the other.

It was very uncomprehendable, but she made it out. She had been taken to the front yard, as she was laid down and Retasu was sprinking water over her face, trying to awaken her.

She opened her eyes after a while, and she saw Retasu hovering over her.

" Mew Retasu-chan!" Ichigo said, though her voice was painfully striking her as she spoke, she continued. " Where… is Aoyama-kun?"

" Momomiya-sama, I'm not very sure, but Keiichiro-sama thinks that we should go back to the café for some type of important information..." Retasu said shakily.

Ichigo stood up and felt a lot better after having some water, and she looked at her for a second, "Wait… where is Akiyo-chan?" Ichigo asked her.

Retasu pointed to the part of grass behind Ichigo, and there laid Akiyo, burned badly on the left ankle, and her right wrist. Ichigo took Rau and smiled, noticing that the _inu_ **(AN:For those of you that don't know, 'inu' is dog in Japanese.)** was perfectly fine. Retasu picked up Akiyo and they both began to walk back to the café….

They walked inside and Keiichiro almost immediately took Akiyo from Ratasu's hands. Masha fluttered around Ichigo's head friendly, as Ichigo began to walk over to where Ryou was.

"What's the big news, Shirogane?" Ichigo said to him kindly.

" HOW COULD YOU LET HIM GET AWAY!?!?!" Ryou screamed at her, throwing his fists down at his side as her eyes grew narrow with anger.

"WHO!?… LET WHO GO!?!" Ichigo yelled back, twice as loud.

"KISSHU-HITEN!! HOW COULD YOU JUST LET HIM WALK AWAY WITH YOUR BOYFRIEND!?!?!" Ryou said.

Ichigo grew quiet, " Kisshu-hiten, ne?" she said sadly, her head drooping downward, "So it was him who took Aoyama-kun…"

" WHO ELSE WOULD IT BE!?!" Ryou screamed.

" Shirogane-onii-chan needs to be nice to Neko-onii-chan!" Purin said, hopping onto his head as she danced around with a plate in her hand.

" Purin-chan is right. Its not her fault she couldn't stop Kisshu-hiten. She probably couldn't even tell he was there! She was practically on fire!" Minto said to Ryou, plucking Purin off of his head.

Ryou looked over at Ichigo, " Did you… even see Kisshu?"

Ichigo shook her head.

"Okay, well, you do know that they will have to stay in the café now. Their… parents didn't survive… and their house is demolished," Ryou said to her in a kind tone, " If you wish, you can stay here a little longer… To talk to Akiyo-chan after she wakes up."

Ichigo looked at him strangely, "Hai… I will."

Ryou turned his back to her on the way to the lab, but then stopped in his tracks, "Sumimasen."

Ichigo was shocked for a while, but then she smiled at his apology, " Kekko desu."

Secretly he smiled behind he bangs, but then he continued walking away and down into the lab.

( Ryou's POV)

I began walking downstairs after talking to Ichigo, and saw that Keiichiro was finished healing Akiyo with medicine, and was now wrapping her wounds.

"How's the girl?" I asked him sleepily.

"She will live… she is badly burned on her wrist and ankle, though. She will wake up soon, I can tell…" Keiichiro replied, "I heard you talking to Ichigo… didn't seem like she took the news too well."

" She didn't see Kisshu-hiten." I said to him, "She barely even was able to see with all the smoke. Retasu-sama said that she was unconscious."

" Hmm… Why didn't she transform?" Keiichiro asked, moving his position around the medical table to the bottom, where he would be able to wrap her ankle.

" I… I'm not sure. Maybe she was caught in the moment; afraid…" Ryou said, " And you cant blame her."

"Yeah… she seems to really love Aoyama-san." He said with a smile.

"Yeah…" Ryou said sadly, "Seems like it…"

"I'm not sure if you are, Ryou-kun," Keiichiro started; his tone cheerful, " But I am very happy for them."

" I… don't know. I'm glad that she found someone that makes her happy, but-"

"You'd rather it be you?" Keiichiro said with a teasingly tone, smiling.

Ryou stared at Keiichiro for a moment, and then looked down, " I suppose."

" Oh… Kami-sama!" Keiichiro said in surprise, jerking back away from her ankle.

" What is it?" Ryou asked, "What's wrong?"

"That…. mark… on her ankle…" Keiichiro started, "It's an injection mark."

_Authors note: MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Gotta love happy-but-slightly-evil-cliffhangers! Please R&R!!!!_


	4. Her Side of The Story

Wounded Berries 

_Author's note: Oh, boy! I'm soooo sorry for the wait! I've been writing this chapter forever, and I know I kept a lot of you guys waiting because of the cliffy. But, in any case, this is the chapter that I have cherished (because the chapter after this is my favorite) writing, mainly because of the explanations and flashbacks. Anyway, I am beginning to speak fluent Japanese in my writing, so I think I will post a thing here for you Un-Japanese-TMM lovers._

_, ne: Do you agree?_

_Hai: Yes_

_Sumimasen: I'm sorry._

_Kekko Desu: It's fine._

_So desu ka: I see…_

_Iie: No_

_Baka: Idiot_

_Kawaii: Cute_

_Hai, dozo: yes, I agree_

_-dono: to treat someone as loyalty_

_-hiten: to speak of someone evilly, or an enemy._

_-onii-san: to call someone a sister or brother_

_-sama: To call someone as if they were high in respect_

_-san: To call someone who is a superior, as if you look up to them_

_-kun: To call (normally a male) someone a friend_

_-chan: to cal (normally a female) someone a friend_

_Nani: What?_

_Naku na Don't cry:_

_Sessha: a term to call yourself formally_

_Anata: You_

_Kudasai: Please_

_Naku na, kudasai…: Please, don't cry…_

_Watashi no ai: … I love you._

_Neko: Cat_

_Yes, yes, I know a very long list. But, hey, I just put what I thought I might put up there in Japanese…_

_Anyway, I hope you love this chapter as much as I did! Thanks for the Reviews; keep em' coming!_

Chapter Four: Her Side of The Story 

(Ryou's POV)

"It's true, Shirogane-san, Akiyo is a Mew!" the tall dark-haired man said shockingly; his tone almost as if he were out of breath, "But how? There were only five specimens for the Mew Project… how can Akiyo-san be…"

I looked over and saw that Keiichiro was rather speechless, though I really had no room to talk. I was probably twice as worse as him; out of breath and completely in shock. There I was, standing face to face with a living mystery… another Mew. That isn't one of my creations, to that fact. How did this happen? Did somebody find my father's notes?

Who did this!

"Run some blood tests and find out everything you can about this girl. I want to know everything from her anima genes, all the way to her shoe size! Feed me everything you got, Keiichiro," I told him almost excitedly, and then walked upstairs to see that Ichigo had already left, and that Masha was fluttering around confoundedly.

"Ichigo leave? Leave Masha?" the small pink robot said to me as it noticed I was watching, then fluttered it's small little wings over to me, looking at me with the saddest expression a robot of his technology could make.

I smiled at it kindly as I raised my hand, petting the small little invention lightly on the head with a few fingers, "R2000, will you do a favor for Ryou?" I asked him tenderly, a light smile on my face.

His eyes lit up with happiness, "Favor for Ryou? Favor?"

I nodded, "Tell the girls to come here to the café. I have important news."

"Masha will do! Masha do favor for Ryou!" it said, and then flew out of the café window, and out into the dark night.

(Normal POV)

Little by little, Masha did this favor for him. He gathered each of the girls and brought them safely to the café without haste, first Retasu. Then he safely returned Purin, and last was Zakuro and Minto (They were at each others house). All of them heard the new about Akiyo, and were awaiting Ichigo's arrival so they could take the matter farther with her there.

There, at Ichigo's home, she was asleep. Curled up in a little cocoon of blankets, dreaming a row of soundless dreams; hoping her lover would return safely back into her arms.

Though poor Masha had a problem.

"Ichigo! Ichigo?" the small robot cooed, ramming hard against Ichigo's bedroom window, making a small tapping noise, "Ichigo! Café news! Important Ryou news!"

She lay soundlessly.

Silently, the little robot sighed as it closed its small little eyes. When it opened its eyes, a high pitched screeching noise came from it, and it began to make a arrangement of screams, beeps, and flashes of bright lights. Stubbornly, the robot tweeted loudly, " Important Ryou news! Ichigo no sleep! No sleep!"

Ichigo jumped and opened her eyes groggily to hear the racket coming from the outside windowpane. She sat up and climbed to her window across the room, "Nya!" she yawned while rubbing her eyes. She half-consciously walked opened the blinds to see Masha, "Masha! Be quiet! It's almost midnight, and you'll wake my parents up!" she said half wittedly, half angrily.

"Masha sorry." It said quietly as it stopped its collateral yell.

"What do you need, Masha?" Ichigo asked it.

"Important Ryou news! Ichigo go to café with Masha! Café news!" Masha tweeted out, much more quietly.

"What's wrong? Did they find Aoyama-kun?" She asked them happily.

Masha looked at her sadly, "No Masaya…"

She sighed frustratingly, "Alright… I'll be outside in a few minutes. Wait for me, alright?"

"Masha will do." The little robot whispered, then flew down to the front door at Ichigo's house.

She slowly walked away from the window and began to stride quietly to her bedroom door, grabbing a long pink robe to cover over her pajamas. She slipped it on while creeping downstairs, and slid sneakily past her parent's room. She opened the front door and looked behind her, checking to make sure no one was around. Then, she turned around and walked outside, closing the door quietly behind her; face to face with Masha.

" I wonder what Shirogane-san is trying to pull," Ichigo thought aloud, " Waking me up in the middle of the night, just to hear more of his dumb lectures!"

Masha looked over at Ichigo as they left the house, a sad expression on its face, "Ichigo no like to hear Ryou news?"

Ichigo shook her head, though she smiled, "it's alright, Masha… it just better be important."

The two of them walked into the Café Mew Mew and were immediately trampled with questions.

"Can you believe it!" Minto asked, rushing up to Ichigo.

"Believe what, nya?" Ichigo asked her tiredly.

"Akiyo-san!" Minto replied energetically.

"What about her?" Ichigo asked sleepily, as she walked over to everyone.

"She's a Mew!" Minto said happily, "She's one of us!"

"_NANI!_" Ichigo screamed.

She ran over to the couch that was nearest to the pale door of the lab, where all of the girls –and Shirogane- were all huddled up around the young girl. Akiyo was lying down soundlessly on the couch, and her head was rested comfortably onto Ryou's lap. She seemed still unconscious from the fire's fumes, but something lingered about her that made her seem perfectly alive. Everyone was looking at her body in awe, as if she were a newly discovered jewel; some of them recognizing the injection mark on her ankle.

"Shirogane-san" Retasu asked, "How exactly can she be a Mew?"

"_Hai, dozo!" _Ichigo said happily, "That's exactly what I'd like to know!"

Purin nodded, " I thought that there were only five experiments, _ne_?" she said curiously, poking at the sleeping beauty's foot.

"_Hai_, for me there were…" Ryou answered.

"Then how come there is another, _ne_?" Zakuro asked him coldly, "No one else has the technology or intelligence to forge another Mew. Did you make a mistake, Shirogane-sama?"

"Nothing is impossible, apparently. I don't have 6th experiment-" he began.

" Open your eyes, _baka_. She's right in front of you." Zakuro interrupted.

" How was I supposed to give the injection mark, Zakuro-chan! She was in AMERICA!" Ryou screamed back, but then he rested a pale hand on his forehead, rubbing it lightly as he closed his eyes, " All of this… is so confusing…"

" Who would do this, Shirogane-san?" Retasu said quietly, "I do not understand…"

There was a moment of silence, but it was broken by Minto's voice.

"What if it was Kisshu-hiten!" she blurted out, "After all, he did kidnap Aoyama-san while Akiyo-chan was unconscious!"

"Even worse…" Zakuro said in a deadpan tone, "What if her and Kisshu are a team?"

Ichigo looked down at Akiyo's face, and then looked over at Zakuro, "I don't think that Akiyo-san would be teamed with Kisshu…we'll have to ask her when she awakens." She replied.

"Yeah, that'll work nicely," Zakuro said; shaking her head, " Wait for her to wake up and say '_Hey, Akiyo-san! I'm glad your okay, but we have some news for you! You're a superhero, and we were wondering if you knew our arch-enemy, Kisshu-hiten, who might have stolen Masaya!'_" she said to them sarcastically, acting as if Ichigo during the quote.

"_Iie,_ Zakuro-chan," Ichigo said, "We'll just talk to her about the fire, and her history in America. Then, we'll lightly tell her about the Mews, and then **mention** Kisshu-hiten, and see if it rings any bells."

Zakuro shook her head, "What's the difference? It won't work…"

"Shirogane-san!" Keiichiro said, "I have the information on Akiyo-san you wanted!"

"Give me all you got, Akasaka-san!" said Ryou happily, turning around to face him, but being careful not to wake the girl.

He cleared his throat, " Akiyo Hino Nakagawa. Age 14. Date of birth: November 1st, 1990. Anima injection process: positive and is the sixth experiment; a fox. Her element of power: Fire. Elemental colors: Black and red. She seems to have a different transformation then the other experiments, and her appearance changes ever so slightly when she is a Mew. Lived in the USA in the town of San Diego, California, with parents until her current age, when they were supposedly killed in a train accident. She then moved to Tokyo, Japan to live with her Aunt and step cousin, Masaya Aoyama, four months after the accident," He took a deep breath, and smiled, "Shoe size 7 ½."

"Woah… four months living alone…" Minto whispered into Retasu's ear, "how did she do it?"

"Beats me," Retasu whispered back, "But something smells fishy."

Ichigo nodded; completely speechless.

"Akiyo-onii-chan has a HUGE foot!" Purin replied in the odd moment, examining her foot as if it were a foreign object.

"Shh…" Ryou said to Purin lightly, as he took her hand kindly away from Akiyo's foot, "She's awakening…"

Everyone immediately got quiet, while some held their breath in the moment of suspense. The girl, Akiyo Nakagawa, opened her eyes; a calm shade of blue escaped from them. She looked around at everyone oddly as she tried to sit up. Ryou slipped his arm around her shoulder and sat her up politely next to him, and then took his arm off of her, to let her sit; staring at all of the girls.

"Wha? … What.. happened?" she said, as she rubbed her forehead lightly with her palm.

" I don't know how to tell you think, Akiyo-san," Ichigo began; her ton low and full of sadness, "But you were involved in a fire over at Aoyama-kun's house. There's nothing left…"

Akiyo's eyes widened, full off frozen shock, "What about Masaya-onii-san!" she said her voice, "Is he alright? Is he even alive?"

"We're… not sure…" Ryou answered solemnly, " He disappeared after the accident, but we think he's alright."

"_You think?_" she yelled, "That's not good enough!"

Akiyo stood up quickly, and a sharp wince of pain struck to her face. She tried walking, but it turned out more like staggering, to the door, "That's not good enough! We… have to go find him! He's all I have left!" Ichigo tried to pull her back, but Retasu stopped her.

"Please, sit down," Ichigo said, "You need rest!"

" I won't rest until I know Aoyama-kun's alright! I've lost everything now, all but him! I'm not going to sit around and let him slip away from my grasp! I wont let him leave me!" She yelled, her tone loud mostly because of pain, and the other partial piece was from anger.

"Don't be foolish, Nakagawa-san," Ryou said kindly, "If you continue now, your shattered ankle will drop you and leave you to the city to die. You'll be dead before you even realize where he might be."

"No… I have to…" Akiyo said stubbornly, her eyes flooded with tears.

She tried taking a few more steps, just making it to the door of Cafe Mew Mew. But while she was opening the door, a hand slipped onto her shoulder, and pulled her back. She was now in the arms of Shirogane Ryou, his broad hands on her shoulders, and her face was mere inches from his.

" We have more to talk about," he said to her coldly, "And I will not allow you to walk away from me."

For a split second, it looked as if Akiyo was blushing. Then again, it could have been a flash of anger escaping to her cheeks, but Shirogane didn't like to think so. She went limp in his arms and he caught her, and with his help be guided her back to the couch where she sat down willingly.

"What's the _huge _news?" Akiyo snapped.

"Well, first, we found out something import-" Ichigo started.

"Let me explain." Keiichiro interrupted; both Ichigo and Akiyo nodded.

"Here in Tokyo, there is a group of five girls who are superheroes. They are called the Tokyo Mew Mew. They each were injected with genes of an endangered animal for their anima powers, enabling them to be able to be part human, part animal. This process was done by Dr. Ryou Shirogane, the person sitting next to you," He motioned to Ryou, "Ichigo, Minto, Retasu, Purin, and Zakuro, are those five girls. And it appears," he bent down in front of her and stared her straight in the eye, "That you are one, too."

Akiyo looked at him with one eyebrow raised, "Prove it."

All five girls looked at each other and smiled.

"_Strawberry Mew Evolution!"_

In a flash, Ichigo was in her uniform; Akiyo's eyebrows raised in shocked.

"Akasaka-san?" Akiyo questioned with a smile.

"Yes, Nakagawa-san?" he replied.

"Tell me more."

He smiled and nodded, " I will late the leader collaborate with you. I have work to do." He said, and walked back downstairs into the lab.

Ichigo sat on the other side of Akiyo, "Tell me all you remember, Akiyo-san," Ichigo said softly, "About the fire."

" Alright…" the girl replied, " After you and I talked, I went inside the kitchen talk to Masaya-onii-san, because he was signaling me to come inside. When I walked inside, I started to help him carry out drinks from the kitchen, and a fire burst from behind me. Out of instinct, I turned around and looked at it, and by the time I turned back around to Masaya-onii-san, he was gone. I figured he had tried to run from the fire, or escape the house, so I started running; trying to find him. But after a while, the smoke burned in my eyes, and I had to close them; and then it started making me dizzy from inhaling in, and I was unconscious before I got to the back door. And well…" she said sadly; a solemn tone, "Here I am…"

"Did you… see anybody take him? Or who started the fire?" Ichigo asked Akiyo kindly, the other girls silent in the deep moment.

"No… I have no idea what started the fire. And what do you mean by **take him?** Did someone kidnap him!"

"We _think_ so…" Ichigo said sadly, and her tone was almost like a whisper, "By our arch enemy."

"Who? And why would he take Masaya?" she asked them out of anger.

" There… is an alien who we fought about a year ago… we thought he had died, but –according to Shirogane-san- he's alive. The reason why he took Aoyama-kun was because he knows that I am in love with Aoyama-kun… and he wants revenge for me not loving him instead," She informed quietly, "His name is Kisshu."

As soon as the name was mentioned, Akiyo was speechless.

Her ice blue eyes looked as if they were frozen over; cold and foggy. Her pale hands were trembling, and yet she didn't move and inch. She sat there, staring deep into Ichigo's eyes; frozen. Tears rolled carelessly down her cheek without effort; no blinking. Nothing. Just an ice-cold stare.

"Akiyo-san? What's… what's wrong?" Ichigo asked her foresightedly; frightened.

" I know him… I know Kisshu-dono," she said blankly; just barely staggering out the words.

" You know Kisshu-hiten as well?" Ichigo asked; Zakuro sighed.

" Green hair; gold eyes… yes?" she yelled, "It's Kisshu…"

" That does sound like him; but there must be a mistake. How do you know _your_ Kisshu?" Ichigo asked her hurriedly.

" He was… my best friend…" She said, " But I wanted him to be more."

_AN: Ahahahah! The story of Akiyo and Kisshu begins next chapter: Forbidden Love_. _Most favorite chapter- A mix of romance, action, humor, but mostly…mystery! Yesh, that's right! A Mew Kitsune_ _first- Please review!_


	5. Forbidden Love

Wounded Berries 

AN: YES! FINALLY! MY FAVORITE CHAPPY IS UP! I loved writing this chapter mainly because of all of the extremely sweet moments, (The Fluffa, I did tweak the RPG order, though) and because of all the humor. I hope you enjoy this chapter, and thanks for all of the wonderful reviews! Keep them rolling in!

Chapter Five: Forbidden Love 

"What do you mean, Akiyo-san?" Ichigo asked her kindly, hoping she wasn't too touchy on the subject, "Please… talk to me."

"H-hai…" Akiyo replied quietly, and took a deep breath before explaining the story.

_: Flashback :_

"Kisshu-dono, why must you leave me?" Akiyo said to the boy sadly, her hand rested tenderly on his chest.

Both of them were standing on a hill they liked to called _Angel's Peak; _watching the sun drop beautifully onto the horizon. They had first met here, and were friends from the very first breath they took; ten months ago today. It was getting darker by the second, and the headlights behind them from Kisshu's car were lingering; waiting. But she didn't want the moment to end; she needed him with her as long as possible. She loved him.

Everything about Kisshu amazed her. The way he looked at her with his deep golden eyes with happiness and love, his short emerald hair, and most importantly… his smile. The smile he had around her was dark and yet cheerful; always made her wonder what was exactly on his mind. He was tall, but just a few inches above her; and he too had the fare and white colored skin she had always admired. The thing she loved about him most, beside his smile, was that he was normal. He never changed around her. He was always Kisshu around her; no one else. Just him.

"Sumimasen, Akiyo-san," he said to her sadly; the saddest expression on his face, " I do not want to leave you here. You are my best friend, ne?"

She distanced her eyes to the lake in front of Angel's Peak; the sunset reflecting on it's calm; shining waters. She didn't look at him; she couldn't bear seeing him sad; it hurt her. She tried getting the sadness out of his eyes as she rested her head on his shoulder. She was surprised by his reaction; an arm wrapped around her.

"You're the only friend I have…" She said to him as tears came to her eyes, " I don't want to loose you…"

" I have to go back to Japan, Akiyo-san… you must understand," he said kindly to her; trying not to pain her more, "I with I could take you there… its such a beautiful place."

" I'll visit you, Kisshu. I promise," she said to him dreamily, "I wont let you leave me for long."

" Good… I don't know what I would do if I lost you." He replied.

The words made her cry with happiness; but she didn't want to show it, so she changed the subject.

"So, what business do you have there without me?" she mused.

He shifted his position a little uncomfortably, " Well.. uhm… there's this girl… she's just so beautiful and smart. I love every expression she makes… happiness… pain… sadness… she's just too wonderful. I'd do anything for her."

Then he realized the words that came out of his mouth; and immediately wanted to take them back. He, too, loved Akiyo, and he knew that those words would hurt her. He never wanted to tell her exactly how he felt, because he knew that this day would come, and if they had gotten closer, it would be much harder for him to walk away from her. He noticed she was quiet; and that's never been a good thing for her.

" So desu ka…" she said, stepping back away from him; though she dreamed of being closer.

"Sumimasen, Akiyo." He said quickly; he didn't have the nerve to tell her how much he loved her now; it would murder the trust.

" Don't apologize…" She said to him, "It's not like we had anything together anyway…"

He looked at her oddly, and touched her face with his fingertips, " I did apologize, and I wont take it back."

She took his hand off of her face and held it, "So… this is goodbye?"

He nodded slowly, "Sayonara…"

" Sayona-"

The moment struck her; she felt it: the flare. She kept her eyes closed even after it, though she smiled in disbelief.

He kissed her.

"-ra" she finished after a while, and when she opened her eyes…

He was gone.

_: Flashback over :_

"…And that's… what happened." Akiyo explained.

Everyone around was speechless.

"Kawaii, ne!" Purin said loudly.

Minto giggled, " Wow… so lucky…"

Retasu sighed, "Such a sad ending…"

Zakuro actually smiled…

… and Ichigo sat starry-eyed.

"Hello!" Shirogane yelled, "We're missing the point here! We're talking about our arch enemy; not a soap opera!"

Ichigo sighed, "Hai, Shirogane…"

" So, does that sound anything like your Kisshu?" Akiyo asked sadly, "Anything at all?"

" You say that your Kisshu was normal, right? Human?" she said oddly.

Akiyo nodded.

" If we're talking about the same Kisshu," Ichigo said, "There's no way its him."

"Why not?" Akiyo asked kindly.

" Well… he doesn't really look human." Ichigo explained.

" His ears are as big as your feet!" Purin yelled, " They're huge and pointy!"

" My feet are pointy?" Akiyo asked.

"No... Where'd you get that idea?" Purin asked.

Akiyo sighed, rubbing her forehead while the others giggled.

" And, another thing…" Ichigo said, "If your Kisshu is the Kisshu that's been in Japan…" she said nervously, "Then I'm that girl he was talking about."

Akiyo looked at her; her eyes unloving, "So the Kisshu here loves you, and my Kisshu might be that person."

" Nya?" she said nervously, "H-hai…"

" Someone's gonna blow a fuse…" Minto whispered.

" So desu ka." She said coldly, " I don't care about who Kisshu loves, and who he doesn't. All I care about is where he is, and where Masaya-onii-san is. So, until I find both of them… we'll settle both of those problems later." She finished.

" Alright…" Ichigo replied, "But tell me more. There is more to the story, ne? Explain everything. How long ago that was, when you got here and why."

Akiyo was still glaring, " I moved here about two weeks after Kisshu left. And in three weeks, my entire life was at end. My little brother, Keitano-san, was kidnapped and killed three days before Kisshu left, and my parents were miraculously thrown off of a cliff in their car on my birthday while trying to pick me up from Angel's Peak four nights after my one and only friend left me. I was stuck there for about a week alone; wondering why I was here and Kisshu and my family wasn't, and then Masaya-onii-san called me up and told me I could live with him; and now I'm here finding out I have from superpower to turn into a fluffy-fire-fox!" she yelled, and then took a few deep breaths afterwards, leaving everyone in shock, "Sumimasen… I didn't.. mean to yell… I just can't deal with all of this at once. Its too much…"

" I think you guys need to go and get some rest," Shirogane said after the long moment of silence, "Minto, Retasu, Purin, and Zakuro… go home. I'll deal with these two now."

They nodded, and in moments they, too, were gone.

" Listen, Akiyo-san," Ryou said, patting her on the back kindly, "I know this passed month has been really hard for you, but it'll all clear up soon. Everything happens for a reason, ne? You'll go through training, and fit in with the Mews. You'll find Aoyama-san and your Kisshu. I promise you."

" How can I trust your word?" she asked him sadly.

" If you don't trust his word," Ichigo said, "Then trust mine."

She nodded, "I believe you then, Shirogane."

He smiled and then turned to Ichigo, "Now, you can leave."

"And what about Akiyo-san?" Ichigo said, "No way I'm letting you keep her in your room!"

Akiyo looked at Ichigo oddly, "Why? Is he a stalker or something?"

" You could say that…" Ichigo said.

Akiyo smiled and ran up the stairs, "All I have to do is lock the door!"

" Akiyo-san! Don't lock that door!" Ryou said, and then got his own door slammed in his face, "You don't know what type of information is behind those doors!"

She pushed herself on the door and locked it, "Goodnight, Shirogane." She said to him kindly.

He sighed, " Sweet Dreams." He said with sarcasm.

She smiled and listened to his footsteps leave the doorway, and pulled down the covers to his bed, laying down in them slowly, "Wow… his room is so empty…" she thought aloud.

She looked around the room and saw nothing but a window, and a desk with a computer on top of it, along with a small chair in front of it; near the window. It was completely bare. No colors. No posters. No wallpaper. No nothing.

"Man," She said, "Shirogane-san needs a serious personality change." She then got up out of bed, curiosity running throughout her veins.

"_You don't know what type of information is behind those doors!"_

" I wonder…" she said, walking over to the computer.

She sat down in the small chair, rolling around the room while the computer was booting up. Finally, she saw that the computer was loaded, and she was face to face with probably the most powerful desktop on the face of the planet… and yet… she looked closer. You would have thought that a boy genius like Dr. Ryou Shirogane would have a normal background on his computer… but there it was.

A picture of Ichigo.

She smiled and immediately got the hint; and began to search his files onto the computer. Inside there were four folders under "My Documents". And they were: Research for Project Mew, Café Layout plans, The Mew Files, and… Ichigo.

She couldn't help but laugh; boy she was sneaky.

She opened it and there was only one file labeled: My Neko. It was a normal word document, so she was expecting some type of obsessive love poems, or plans to make her his… but it was nothing but a picture and three sentences. The title of it was, "The Perfect Gift." She scrolled down and saw the gift, giggling in sheer bliss of the breathtaking item. Below it was the sentences, "230. Deadline: 71805."

Clearly, it was some type of code.

She smiled, though, for she was clever. She thought, obviously, that the first three numbers- sentence actually- was the price. And the second sentence was clearly a date. July 18th of this year.

She smiled.

It was tomorrow.

Akiyo opened her eyes the next morning, and she smiled. She sat up, planning to go tell Shirogane that she knew, and found herself looking at an unlocked door. On the door was a small note, "Hope you slept well. R."

She smiled, "You have no idea…" she said to herself, the image of Ichigo's gift in her mind.

She ran downstairs to go and thank Ryou for the note, and for braking into his own room (proving he truly was a stalker after all). There she came face to face with Keiichiro, from which she smiled and looked at him politely.

" I see that you got Shirogane-san's note," He said to her kindly, "If your looking for him, he's already gone. He went to go see Ichigo. Wake her up, or something…"

" So desu ka…" she said smiling, and mentally she knew EXACTLY what he was doing.

" Wait awhile for him to come back. Plus, I need your measurements for your café uniform," he said softly, "Come down to the lab and I'll measure you."

" 'Kay." She said, and then walked down with him to the lab, blushing.

(Ryou's POV)

There I was, standing like a complete idiot in her lawn. I didn't know what to do, but I had a slight idea how I was supposed to give her this. I figured I would get Masha to wake her up, ring the doorbell, leave it and the note on the doorstep, and dart away. Hopefully it would work…

"Masha, I need another favor. But it's secret." He whispered.

"Secret favor, tweet!" the little robot said kindly, "Masha will do."

" I need you to go and wake Ichigo. But don't tell her I sent you, alright? Just tell her… that she was needed in the café a few hours ago," Ryou said, feeling his heart beat in his throat, " Hurry."

" Masha will do!" he said, and then hurried up to Ichigo's open window, where Ryou heard him follow the orders.

"Masha, nya!" he heard Ichigo say, "What is it?"

" You need to be at café! Late Ichigo!" Masha tweeted.

Ryou smiled, and walked coolly up to the front door, where he set the note and the small gift. The rang the doorbell, and darted away behind the wall, where he would watch her reaction.

(Normal POV)

"What? Two hours?" she yelled, and darted down the stairs.

_Ding dong._

"Nani?" Ichigo said to herself oddly, and walked slowly down to the door where she saw no one standing there.

She looked around and found a small note on the welcome mat, followed by a small, white box covered with a pink ribbon. She bent down and picked both of them up, reading the note first: _I'm Sorry. RS._ She looked at the note as if it were in a foreign language, and then turned her gaze to the small white box. She untied the pink ribbon and then took it off slowly, and then she took off the lid to the box.

A gasp escaped from her lungs.

There, inside the small box, was a diamond necklace. It was as if it were a chocker, though the part around her neck was made completely out of diamonds. In the center was the head of a neko, a rare and shining sapphire. The neko was winking its topaz eyes, the collar around its neck said, "Mai Neko".

"_Sh-Shirogane…"_ she said in awe, taking off Masaya's necklace, and then put it on.

" Ryou like Ichigo! Ryou like Ichigo!" Masha taunted, and secretly watched his owner dart off to the café.

" You… don't think he does… do you?" Ichigo said aloud.

"_Do you?"_

Ichigo walked into the café, fingering at the gift around her neck. She then saw that Akiyo was in the main café room, waiting patiently on the couch. She smiled at her and walked over to Ichigo, where she struck up a conversation.

"So, what brings you here?" Akiyo asked dumbly -not noticing the necklace, "I mean… to the café."

"I wanted to see Shirogane-sama…" she said, "I want to talk to him."

Akiyo looked at her with a smile, "Reaaally?" she said in a taunting voice.

Ichigo raised a confused eyebrow, "Really." She said in a deadpan voice.

" Oh, well, he went downstairs because Keiichiro called him so they could "discuss" something…" she said oddly, "I've been waiting here for a few minutes."

"Gir…ls…" Keiichiro said oddly, almost completely out of breath from running up the stairs, "I… got… news…" he said between breaths.

" Take a breather!" Akiyo said.

" No… time…." He said, resting his hands on his knees, "… Aoyama… san…. In… park!" he mumbled out.

"WHAT?" Ichigo and Akiyo screamed, and then began to ran out the door.

AN: Don't you just love my cliff hangers -? Anyway, R&R! oh, and another wonderful chapter is coming up next- my second favorite: _Return of the Emerald Prince._ Have fun waiting P!


	6. Return Of The Emerald Prince

AN: I know, It's been forever since I've updated. I just got a job, got into a band, so things have been rough. But now I'm back! Alright, I've decided to make everyone happy in this chapter. I've been getting some serious requests for Kisshu and Ichigo fluff, Masaya and Ichigo Fluff, and Ryou and Ichigo Fluff. So, I'll make almost everyone happy in this chapter; and a few more in the next. And I bet you can find out what happens by the title! R Enjoy!

Chapter Six: The Return Of The Emerald Prince 

"Nakagawa-san!" Ichigo yelled after her, "Wait a second!"

"There's no time!" Akiyo said, "Masaya-onii-kun could disappear any second! Let's go!"

Ichigo turned to look at Keiichiro, who nodded in approval. She smiled at him and ran after Akiyo, who had already ran out of the café doors. Her feet began to hurt after her harsh running, her heel beating against the ground carelessly; even with her shoes on. Akiyo was still far ahead, but not far enough to where she couldn't see her. She kept running blindly, following the young girl.

"Akiyo-san!" Ichigo called after her, as Akiyo stopped; her face confused, "What's wrong?"

Akiyo's eyes searched around the night sky; looking for a place to go, "Where is the entrance to the park?" she asked her.

"There!" Ichigo called, pointing to the wooden bridge that connected to the orchid of Sakura trees.

Akiyo nodded, and ran towards the bridge at full speed; Ichigo close behind.

Sooner or later, they finally reached it.

The Sakura trees were lit up by moonlight, they're pale pink and white petals turning silver with the silhouette of the orbiting white planet. The wind blew silently and brushed Ichigo's hair against her cheek, as both of their eyes searched for a sign of life from Masaya. So far, there was nothing; but they didn't give up hope. He was there; both of them could feel it.

"Ichigo-chan…" Akiyo said to her, "Do you see him? Masaya-onii-kun?"

Ichigo turned to Akiyo sadly, and watched her long golden hair flutter in the wind, "No."- She shook her head- "Nothing."

Akiyo put her head down and stepped to the familiar spot; where she and Aoyama were before all of it happened. Where they stood, looking at the sunset. Her hands slowly covered her eyes, and a teardrop fell from her trembling jaw, onto the ground.

Ichigo watched this, but found that there was nothing she could do. She walked a few steps in front of herself; walking away from Akiyo by a few trees, and leaned against a tree, listening to Akiyo's silent plea.

"Kami-sama… please send Aoyama-onii-san back to me. He's all I have left. Please, don't take him away from me," Akiyo cried, "He's all I have. If he leaves me, I'm damned in this world… _Alone_. Kami-sama, please… send him back home. Send him safely back into our arms… don't let him die here. Not now… not _now_…"

Ichigo closed her eyes, fighting back tears. It was hard to listen to Akiyo like that. Her tone was so cold, so wishful… as if she was praying for false hope. She let her head slowly sink down, listening to Akiyo's words. She began to shake her head in fear, hoping that what was happening was simply a dream. A dream… and nothing more. Then, it went silent. Ichigo opened her eyes and looked back to see Akiyo looking near Ichigo, her eyes widen in fear. Confused, Ichigo stepped forward and walked over to Akiyo, who was now blinded by tears.

"What is it, Akiyo?" Ichigo asked her horrendously, "What's wrong?"

Silence.

Ichigo noticed that Akiyo was staring behind her, and so Ichigo kept her eyes on her, and then turned slowly until her back was facing her…

Those eyes. Those deep… golden eyes.

Ichigo turned and saw them staring at her in the darkness, and suddenly the wind blew harder. A footstep was heard. Then another. Another. More. Soon enough, she was staring at him; face-to-face. She scowled, as his hand touched her jaw.

_Kisshu._

"Don't touch me," Ichigo said to him with revulsion.

"But, Ichigo," he said to her kindly, his topaz eyes softening, "It's been so long…"

She looked at him, and closed her eyes as he wrapped his arms around her, in a tender embrace.

"I've missed you, Honey." He whispered in her ear, his lips moving against the side of her face tentatively.

She pulled away, and looked at him coldly, "What have you done to Aoyama-kun?" she asked him callously; glaring him daggers.

His face looked shocked, as if he were hurt, "You think that I would hurt, him?" he asked her sadly, "It really has been a while…"

She shook her head, "Tell me, Kisshu-hiten."

He sighed impatiently, floating up into the air as his flew behind his head; "You've gotten persistent, Ichigo."

She closed her eyes in anger, "If I have to ask one more time," she murmured in anger; under her breath.

"Open your eyes!" Kisshu said happily, "He's already here."

Ichigo opened her eyes and looked around; nothing, "I don't… see him…"

Kisshu sighed restoratively and looked at Ichigo, who had just turned to face him. He floated down to where she was; against the tree. He pressed against her lightly; gently. He smiled as he pulled his face closer to hers, and bent his lips back down to her ear.

"Do you trust me?" He whispered.

Ichigo started to blush, "Uhm… How can I? Your… You're my … my… my enemy." She stuttered out.

He smiled secretly; his toothy smile, "Then let me ask you another question," he said to her, getting closer, "Does an enemy normally make you blush?"

She stayed quiet for a while, and then avoided the question by asking one of her own, "What are you trying to say to me?" she asked again, trying her hardest not to stutter.

His hands slowly slipped to her arms and gently pulled her closer to him, as he began taking steps back, "Just follow me."

Ichigo stayed quiet, and closed her eyes, letting him lead her.

_Where… is he taking me? And … He… he's so close… _

Suddenly, they stopped; but Ichigo stayed silent and was too afraid to open her eyes.

Slowly, Kisshu slipped away from her, but then kissed her eyelids, "Open your eyes."

She did so, and she looked around and saw that she was only a few feet in front of the tree she was leaning against. She cocked her head to the side; confused. "What… was the point of that?"

Kisshu pushed himself off of the ground and floated back into the sky; a few feet ahead. He looked at her lovingly, and yet with pain.

"Look up."

She turned around to the tree was facing, and saw Masaya; laying lifelessly in one of the branches.

"Aoyama-kun!" She screamed, and took a step towards him, but then whirled around; facing Kisshu, "What did you do to him? Why did you do this?"

Kisshu chuckled, "The lucky bastard is still alive; just unconscious."

He flew over to the tree, and lifted Masaya up to his arms; the boy limp and unmoving. Kisshu went over to Ichigo and set him down on the ground, then stood on the ground next to them.

Shakily, Ichigo went to her knees; in tears next to him.

"Aoyama-kun… Your alive…" she whispered to the nothingness, and then traced her nails along side his jaw, "I was so afraid…"

Kisshu rolled his eyes.

"Why is he like this, Kisshu? What did you do to him?" Ichigo asked him angrily, "Why isn't he conscious?"

Kisshu smiled a toothy smile, squatting down next to Masaya, "You're asking the wrong person. Master's orders were clear to return the dark-haired one to him."

"But what does Aoyama-kun have to do with you?" Ichigo asked, "We saved him a year ago…"

Kisshu shook his head, "Your idiot boyfriend has a link to us. His soul is what we want."

"His soul?" Ichigo screamed, "What are you talking about?"

"You'll understand in time, sweetie." He said to her kindly, taking a step towards her, and over Masaya. He stood behind her, and pulled her back to his chest forcefully, "But for now… I have to go."

"Wait." Akiyo called shakily; her voice full on pain and confusion, "Wait for me…"

Kisshu turned around, to face her. His eyes widened for a second, but then softened at the sight of her, "W-who are you?" he asked her.

Akiyo smiled, "You've forgotten." She whispered, and then walked to him, looking him over; her hands touching his ears, "What has happened to you?"

He looked at her angrily, "I don't even know you! Stop speaking in riddles!"

"Stop acting, Kisshu," Akiyo said, looking at him with all seriousness, "You know who I am. It's me… Akiyo."

"Akiyo?" Kisshu said with a raised brow, and turned to Ichigo, "Is she always this damn confusing?" he mumbled to her.

Ichigo shook her head; and Kisshu faced Akiyo again.

"Listen girl, I don't know who you are," Kisshu began to explain, "And I don't know how you know me," He pushed her away from me, "But I'm Ichigo's, and I'm sure she doesn't want you touching her lover."

Ichigo eyes flew open, "WHAT?"

Akiyo resisted the fact that she was being rejected, and stepped forward, "But Kisshu-dono… you couldn't have forgotten me…" she said to herself in reassurance, "Stop acting, please…" Tears began to seep from her eyes, falling down her cheeks, "I still love you…"

Kisshu shook his head, and raised a hand; slapping her harshly against her face.

"Kisshu!" Ichigo yelled in anger, "Why did you do that!"

Kisshu kept his eyes locked onto Akiyo's coldly, "I have a perfect reason to. I cant fall for this fool," he said to Ichigo; but wouldn't leave her glance, "I don't want to hurt you, Ichigo."

"But I don't love you, you know that!" Ichigo yelled after him, "I love Masaya."

Kisshu shook his head, and turned his head to her, "Not for long. You'll be mine soon."

Ichigo looked at him confusedly, her eyes narrowed.

He turned his glance to Akiyo and looked at her kindly for a few seconds, and then turned to Ichigo, "I'm leaving… Master needs me back now, he doesn't feel I should stay any longer…"

"Master?" Ichigo said oddly, "Who is your _Master_?"

Kisshu shook his head, "I can't tell you," he said; love reflecting in his eyes. His next reply came to him, as he began to float off into the sky:

"_You're my enemy."_

Akiyo dropped to her knees after he went away; crying as she chanted…

"Why can't you be mine?"

AN: Okay, I have a few things to make clear. The last line was Akiyo talking, and not talking about how she wanted to make Kisshu hers, but talking about how she wished that she was his enemy instead of Ichigo's. If you go through and read it again, it'll probably make sense. Okay, another thing… I know this chapter was really confusing with all the "master" and "soul" and "Akiyo and Kisshu" moments, but all of it will come together in the next few chapters. Anyway, I'm sorry for updating so TERRIBLY late, and I'll try to get another chapter up sometime these next two weeks or so. Hope you liked it, R&R, and keep reading!

Next chapter: _Diamond Tears_


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